Forgotten
by Sheepchi
Summary: COMPLETE “It’s like… like I don’t know who I am anymore. Who I belong to….” HieiOC
1. Sold to the Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." Hiei/OC

**Part One: Sold to the Night**

**Author's notes:** Just some forewarning. The vast majority of this fic will be very dark. There will be references to suicide, rape and prostitution, (though there will be _nothing_ graphic: I don't write lemons), and abuse. If you can't handle it, don't read it. This is an angst/romance (note that angst comes first—it's more angst than romance) with the main pairing being Hiei/OC, though I will do my best to keep the OC from being a Mary-Sue. The last part of this fic is already written, so I should be able to finish this one. This is an idea that I've been playing around with for over a year, so that just tells you how hard I've worked to get this just right and that I'll be eager to finish it. But the frequency of updates will depend on review numbers.

**Rating: PG-13**

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho. C'est la vie.

* * *

* * *

Those two men had been following her for two blocks now. It made her thoroughly nervous, too. As if she wasn't jumpy as to begin with…. She wrapped her thick wool coat tighter around her thin frame, risking half a glance behind her to see if the two men were still there. Yes, they were definitely following her. Maybe she'd loose them around the next corner. No, they were still there. She broke into a run.

It didn't take long for the two men to catch up with her. Between the dark streets and the fact that she no longer had the faintest idea where she was made it far to easy for them to trap her in a secluded alley. She felt the colour in her face drain as the men came closer, backing her into a brick wall. It happened quickly. Too quickly. One held her down—not that it was necessary: she was far too small to have been able to defend herself. A burst of pain followed by a stench of blood. And then the men left.

And there was darkness.

* * *

"Akiko! Akiko, you little bitch, get down here!" a thickly built man yelled, causing the cream coloured walls of the room to vibrate with his rage. When no one answered his call, the man screamed again. "Akiko, you come when your father calls you!" 

The petite form of a girl tip-toed into the room, trying to make herself as unnoticeable as possible.

There was something unusual about this girl. She was not particularly beautiful. Pretty, yes, with her ivory skin and emerald eyes, but not beautiful. She looked too frightened to be beautiful. Still, something of an unearthly presence lingered with her. But it was apparent that the man did not notice this.

"So there you are!" he growled. "Where the hell have you been? Gone for a week and don't say nothing about where you're going?"

'I did tell you were I was going,' she thought to herself. 'You were just too drunk to care.'

Her father surveyed her with great distaste. "You filthy little wench," he hissed. "You're worse than your mother. At least I knew where she was all the time. She always told me. Let me know when she wasn't gonna come home."

"I was coming home," Akiko whispered. "Something happened. I had to go to the hospital."

"Are you talking back to me?" her father demanded dangerously. "Are you?"

Akiko looked away from him. He grabbed her face roughly and pulled her to face him. "You don't talk back to me, girl. You _never_ talk back to me."

The next thing she saw was a fist coming towards her face.

* * *

Akiko landed with a soft thump on the damp earth outside her window. Being as silent as she could, she double check her knapsack too see if she had what she needed. 

Clothes. Check. Hairbrush. Check. Money. …Not quite check. But that wasn't too big of a problem, she told herself as she slipped through the shadows into the woods. She could take care of that when she got her pay check from work.

Oh right. A job. Didn't have one of those.

Akiko touched her face gingerly. Still swollen. Who was she kidding? No one would hire her. Not with her looking like this.

"Crap," Akiko sighed. "What now?"

* * *

Ring. Ring. Ring. 

God, were _all _diner bells that annoying? Not that it really mattered. A week away from home and she was still jobless. The diner didn't seem like all that great of a place, but by now, she'd take just about any work this place could offer. Nerve-grating bell and all.

The one plus side to the hole-in-the-wall building was that it stayed warm, which would be extremely important in a few days: there was a cold snap on the way, and since she'd only managed to shove some light weight clothes into her bag the night she left, she'd probably freeze her ass off.

Sighing, she slid into one of the plastic booths, digging in her jean pockets for some money.

"Can I get you somethin', hun?" a feminine voice with a slight nasal quality asked as Akiko pulled out a handful of coins.

"Uh, yeah," Akiko responded, counting her money. "As much coffee as this will get me, please." Akiko looked up at the over-weight middle-aged waitress and handed the aproned woman the coins.

The woman gave something similar to a grin, took the money, and ambled off, leaving Akiko alone to survey the nearly empty diner. It was quite worse for wear—the paint was peeling from the walls and there were grease stains on the countertops. Still, it was better than nothing.

Akiko's eyes fell on a small group of people huddled around the table behind her. They seemed to be the only other patrons the diner had. Akiko checked her watch. Three A. M. What were these people doing out at such an ungodly hour? She shook her head as if to banish the question. What right did she have to question the actions of the strangers? After all, she was out at three in the morning, too.

"Hey kid," a gravely female voice called, Akiko turned to the direction of the voice and saw a tall, thin woman wearing too much make up and not enough clothes.

"Can I help you?" Akiko asked timidly.

"Yeah, kid," the woman said, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of her handbag. "You got a light?"

"Uh, no," Akiko responded quickly. "No, I don't smoke."

The woman shrugged. "Oh well." She tossed the package of cigarettes back into her bag and returned to the group at the table.

"Here's your coffee, dear," the waitress said in a slightly cold manner as she set the small styrofoam cup down on the table. "You need anything else?"

"Yes," Akiko responded, turning to look at the waitress. "A job. You don't know where I could find one, do you?"

A frown creased the waitress's face. "I'm afraid not _dear_," she said, her eyes narrowing. "There's no one around here in need ofthe services of… someone like you." The waitress then stormed away, face reddening and lips pursed.

"Okay," Akiko said to herself. "That was odd." But she shrugged it off and began sipping her coffee, thankful that it was so warm.

By the time she had drained the cup, Akiko was the only person left in the diner. She pulled the sleeves of her sweatshirt over her hands in preparation for the cold as she stood up and left the building, heaving a sigh.

"Damn," Akiko hissed as the bitter chill hit her face. "I've got to get some money soon, or I'm gonna be a 'kiko-sicle."

"Hey, Kid," the woman who had asked Akiko for a light beckoned. "Did you say you need a job?"

"Yeah," Akiko answered cautiously. "Why? You know where I can get one?"

"'Samatter of fact I do, Kid," the woman responded, blowing a puff of smoke into the air. She must have found someone with a lighter. "My boss is lookin' for some fresh blood. Says we need some new faces so that we can get more business."

Akiko cocked her head slightly to one side. "What kind of work do you do?"

A smirk played across the woman's face. "We…we do street work. Yeah." She lifted her cigarette to her mouth and gave another puff of smoke. "That's it. Street work. Know what I mean?"

Akiko surveyed the woman, truly taking in her appearance for the first time. The woman was sickeningly thin with matted hair that Akiko assumed was supposed to look blonde and had a somewhat dishevelled look to her. Like she'd spent the night going from place to place. Akiko may have been naïve, but she wasn't stupid. She knew what kind of work this woman was offering.

"No thanks," Akiko replied. "I don't think—"

"Look, Kid, don't decide now," the woman chuckled. "Here." She handed Akiko a slip of paper with an address on it. "This is where we'll be tomorrow at around noon. Come by if you decide you're interested. Tell 'em Cairo sent you." And the woman ambled off, leaving a trail of cigarette smoke in her wake.

* * *

She could not believe she was doing this. No way in the world she was really here. Akiko opened one eye. Yep, she was most certainlyhere. 

The room was dark and reeking of cigarette smoke. Women of all sorts were scattered around on mattresses and couches, some sleeping, some talking about the last night's escapades.

She was definitely not at church.

"What're you here for, Tiny?" a thin, muscular man questioned Akiko. "Who sent you?"

"Uh… Cairo," Akiko responded, wanting nothing more than to sneak away and forget that she'd ever been here. "Sh-she said I'd be able to find a job here."

The man eye Akiko critically. "Well, you ain't got much to sell," he said bluntly. "You're short, skinny, and you ain't all that much to look at. How old are you?"

"Sixteen," Akiko answered, wrapping some of her rich, curly auburn locks around her index finger nervously.

"You worked the streets before?"

"No, sir. Never."

"You clean?"

"…Pardon?"

The man shrugged. "Helps get 'em interested. They like fresh meat."

Akiko turned away from the man. "…No. Not by choice, but no all the same."

"Hmm," the man closed his eyes in thought for a moment. "Well, like I said, you ain't got much goin' for you."

Akiko bowed her head. If she couldn't even get a job _here_….

"But you seem like you need someone to look out for you. And these girls'll do that for you. I'll hire you. You can stay here today. You'll walk with Cairo tonight. Deal?"

The girl hesitated. Did she really want to do this? Maybe she should just go home. But she suddenly thought of a fist flying at her and made her choice.

"Deal."

**

* * *

****

* * *

****Author's Notes:** Well, that was interesting. Sorry that there were no YYH characters in this chapter. They'll start showing up in the next one. Hey, I've finally figured out why it takes me so long to update! Solitaire. I swear, it's addictive or something! I type three words and then I play a game of solitaire. How sad is that? Anyways, I intend to start chapter two tomorrow or the next day, depending on my schedule. And I _will_ eventually finish my other fics. I just had to get this idea out there—it's been eating at my brain for the longest…. Read and review, please. Well, that was interesting. Sorry that there were no YYH characters in this chapter. They'll start showing up in the next one. Hey, I've finally figured out why it takes me so long to update! Solitaire. I swear, it's addictive or something! I type three words and then I play a game of solitaire. How sad is that? Anyways, I intend to start chapter two tomorrow or the next day, depending on my schedule. And I eventually finish my other fics. I just had to get this idea out there—it's been eating at my brain for the longest…. Read and review, please. 


	2. Starry Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like…like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." ANGSTY Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes:** I hope you guys can forgive all my spacing errors in the first chapter. I swear my computer has mood swings…. Anywho, the YYH characters will be appearing in this chapter like I promised (yay!). Oh, and to my dear reviewers:

sammy: Thanks for being the first reviewer for this fic! I hope you like the rest of it as much as the first chapter!

Kurama'sfoxykitsune: Wow, demanding much? Well, you keep reviewing! It'll help me update more often if I know there are people reading this fic.

Moojuice Nne: Thanks for the compliments. And for helping me with my writer's block. You're such a sweetheart! As to the street lingo… it's amazing what you can learn from watching _Cold Case Files_ once or twice. Or obsessively.

**DISCLAIMER: **I do**_ NOT _**own Yu Yu Hakusho. Much as I wish I do….

**Part Two: **Starry Night

* * *

"Twenty. Thirty. Forty. Fifty. Sixty," Akiko murmured as she slid the bills one by one through her hands. She was sitting cross legged on the couch, far away from Cairo and the other girls, in what was probably the most secluded part of the warehouse she now called home. Strands of her wavy auburn hair that had fallen loose from her high ponytail fell into her eyes as she reached under the couch for a small wooden box in which she kept her earnings.

A series of laughs erupted from the collection of girls at the other end of the room.

"And then," one of the girl's voices exclaimed, dripping with giddiness, "the he says, 'Well, how much do you think you're worth?'"

Once again, the rest of the girls chorused in with laughter. Akiko rolled her eyes. Honestly, did that girl really think that everyone else needed to know about her clients? Heaving a sigh, Akiko slid the money into the box and returned the box to its spot under the couch.

"Hey 'Kiko!" Cairo prodded, sneaking up on the younger girl and grabbing her in a quasi-headlock. "Whatcha doin' over here by yourself? Why don't you come over an' talk to the girls?"

As she fought to free herself from Cairo's grasp, Akiko replied, "'Cause I don't want to talk about work. I don't like to think about work."

A frown creased Cairo's face, and she immediately released Akiko. "Aw, sweetie," the older girl sighed, "you've gotta get over this. Like it or not, this is where life's dropped you. This is who you are now." And Cairo returned to the group on the other side of the room.

"No," Akiko whispered at Cairo's retreating back. "This is who _you_ are."

* * *

All she had to do was loose Cairo. Shouldn't have been too hard.

But it was.

It was almost as if Cairo was expecting her to make a run for it. Maybe Cairo was smarter than Akiko took her for. But Cairo couldn't keep an eye on the girl forever. Could she? God, Akiko hoped not.

After half an hour, the night's first costumer arrived for Cairo. With half a glance at her younger companion, Cairo walked off with the balding man who had bought her.

As soon as Cairo was out of sight, Akiko set off running back to the warehouse.

By the time she reached the run-down warehouse, a rose tint flushed her porcelain skin, and her breath came in short pants. Akiko quickly peeked inside one of the filthy windows to make sure none of the other girls were lingering. When she was satisfied that no one remained in the building, she snuck into the building, still being wary, and she crept over to the couch that hid her box of money. As swiftly and quietly as she could, Akiko stuffed all of the money she had made in the past two weeks into her knapsack with her clothes and scuttled out of the building.

She stood outside the warehouse shivering in the cold and taking in the look of the building for what she hoped was the last time. A small sigh of relief escaped her lips. She supposed that she was more ashamed of her new… career than she had allowed herself to admit. But now, she was getting away.

And she wasn't coming back.

* * *

Kurama took a deep breath, taking in a taste of the crisp winter air. It really was quite nice to get out of the house every once in a while. See the stars….

Okay, so he wasn't really _supposed_ to be out this late. But still, it was most pleasant.

He was leaning against a streetlamp, one foot on the ground and the other resting at the base of the lamp in a very "handsome movie star-esque" way when he saw her.

Or rather, when she ran headlong into him going ninety to nothing.

"Oh m'God, I'm so sorry," she said as she helped him off the ground. "I wasn't paying any attention to where I was going."

The girl continued to apologize even as Kurama got to his feet, brushing the dust off of his clothes. But she never met his eyes. Almost as if she was afraid of him. Weird.

"… And well, it's just been such a really hectic night that I haven't been paying attention to anything I've done," she continued as she reached for her bag, which had been dropped during the accident. "I'm really sorry."

"It's alright, really," Kurama replied kindly, handing her the knapsack. It was then that he finally saw her face. Or, more accurately, he saw her eyes. Huge, emerald and… haunted. But brimming with determination. He'd seen eyes like that before, only those eyes had been crimson as opposed to green. "Do you need any help?" Kurama questioned, studying the girl intensely.

She looked away from him, ending his brief view of her. "None that you could give me," she whispered, more to herself than to him.

Kurama opened his mouth to say something else, but before he could speak, the girl had vanished.

"Odd," he muttered, turning to walk back home. As he stepped, he noticed a small card lying at his feet. A driver's license bearing the strange girl's photograph. He pocketed it. "Very odd indeed."

* * *

"I'm sorry, Miss," the teller said, adjusting her glasses agitatedly, "but as I said before, we can't let you make a withdrawal with out some form of identification."

Akiko sighed exasperatedly, furiously brushing her thick locks out of her face. "But I gave you the account number _and_ the password _and_ the key to my box!" she exclaimed, frustrated. "How could I possibly know all that and be a fraud?"

"I'm sorry Miss," the teller bit back. "But it's bank policy. I need to see a driver's license or an I.D. card."

"Urgh, fine," Akiko relented as she began digging through her knapsack for her license.

Hairbrush. Clothes. Money. Where the hell was her license?

The teller was by now, tapping her fingers impatiently on the countertop. "Maybe you should just go to the back of the line until you can find some I.D.," the teller suggested coldly.

"Yeah," Akiko muttered, dazedly. "Yeah… maybe I should do that…."

Akiko walked away from the counter and out to the front of the bank, where she sat on the concrete curb. This was really strange. She _knew_ she had her license when she left the warehouse…. How could it be gone now?

Then she remembered.

"Damn it," she hissed. She must have dropped it when she ran into that guy. "Great. Now I have no home and no I.D." She stood up and kicked at the curb. "Sucks to be me right now."

* * *

The house was hardly warm and welcoming. And it didn't give off that happy, fuzzy feeling that "good" homes are supposed to have. But this was where the girl's license said that she lived, so Kurama had come. A feeling of discomfort fell upon him as he knocked smartly on the door. Assorted grumblings and belches reached his ears as someone inside the house came to the door and opened it.

"What do you want?" the broad shouldered man who had answered the door demanded, lifting a glass bottle to his mouth.

Kurama winced inwardly. The man smelled heavily of liquor, and it burned the kitsune's sensitive nose. "I'm sorry to bother you, Sir," he said politely, "but does…" he glanced at the license for the girl's name, "Akiko Mishimi live here? She dropped this when she ran into me last night." Kurama held up the driver's license.

Anger flared in the man's eyes. "What do you know about her, huh?" he demanded, wiping the dampness from his mouth with his forearm. "What do you know about that damn slut? She out there trying to make it alone? Is she?"

Kurama was a tad bit shocked. He backed away slightly, not sure what the man would do.

"You tell my little bitch of a daughter," the man breathed, "that she'd better never show her hide around this house again, or I'll kill her!" And the man slammed the door in Kurama's face.

Still somewhat shocked, Kurama made his way back to the sidewalk. He hadn't expected to come across a sadistic father. Although, it did make sense when he thought about it. It explained the girl's reluctance to meet his eyes. But it didn't fully explain the horror that her face conveyed. Kurama slipped the license back into his pocket, a grim look on his face.

He'd just have to locate this girl and find out more about her, wouldn't he?

**

* * *

**

**Author's notes:** Hmm… this chapter wasn't as good as the first one. I hope I didn't disappoint the readers of the first chapter. Oh, before anyone asks, no, Akiko is NOT Kurama's sister. That idea has been done to death (no offense to those authors whose OCs are Kurama's sister, there are just so many…). Yeah. This chapter was _really_ hard to write. I started it about six times, and I still don't think it turned out all to well. Well, chapter three will be better, I promise! I'll start working on it tomorrow (and hopefully it won't be as temperamental as this stupid chapter was). Well, I really have nothing more to add here. Read and review, please.


	3. Music of the Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." ANGSTY Hiei/OC.

**Author's Notes:** Yeah. This part may have a spoiler in it, if I've got my information right, so if you don't want to know what happens next in the anime, then turn your face away….

From the garish light of day,

Turn your thoughts away from cold unfeeling light…

What? I'm a Phan; I can get away with it….

I'm kind of unsure about this part. I think that Hiei stays in Makai after the end of the series, but I've only seen up to episode 100 (and no one seems to have summarized episodes 101-112… grr). So what I'm going to do is write this part as if he _did_ stay with Mukuro, and I'll change it if I find out otherwise. If anyone knows how the series ends (or where I can find some good episode summaries), please let me know via the email address in my profile. Well, time to thank the reviewers.

samuraiduck27: Thanks for the encouragement! I'll try not to dissappoint you.

demonchild22: Thanks for reviewing both chapters! I hope you keep reading the fic.

Moojuice Nne: twitch I'm trying to picture the whole party dress thing. Anyways, thanks for helping me with my writer's block.

And now, on with the fic!

**DISCLAIMER:** I own nothing. Aren't you shocked?

**Part Three: **Music of the Night

* * *

"Akiko Mishimi," Kurama muttered to himself, "you certainly are hard to find." The red haired kitsune leaned against the trunk of one of the great trees in the park, examining the license carefully, frowning. A week he'd had this girl's license, and he still hadn't found her anywhere in the city. And no one seemed to where she was or even who she was, save her father, but Kurama preferred not to think about that. He let out a sigh. For God's sake, he couldn't have just _imagined_ her, could he? The kitsune was about to give up and go home when his ears picked up a rustling in the tree limbs above his head. 

"What're you doing here?" Kurama inquired. "I thought you were never going to come back to ningenkai, Hiei."

The tree branches gave a final rustle as a black clad figure leapt from the upper limbs and landed expertly on the ground in front of the thoroughly unsurprised kitsune.

"Believe me, if I had a choice, I wouldn't waste my time _here_," the figure responded in an icy baritone voice.

Kurama cocked an eyebrow quizzically. "Might I ask what the situation is?"

Crimson eyes stared at the kitsune frigidly. "Mukuro is dead," Hiei said his voice devoid of any feeling, sympathetic or otherwise.

"That's sudden," the kitsune responded. "She was murdered?"

"Probably," Hiei stated simply.

"How does that affect you?"

"The vast majority of Makai thinks that I killed her."

"…Did you?"

Kurama received a less-than-amiable look from the other yokai. "How does this make you have to return to the human world?" the red head asked curiously. "I'd think you'd be able to handle whatever attackers that'd come after you."

"You forget that my death would mean that Mukuro's territory is free game," Hiei responded grimly. "Almost all of Makai is after my blood."

"I see," Kurama muttered. "Who's running the territory while you're here?"

"No one I'll have any trouble getting rid of," Hiei responded forebodingly.

The kitsune turned this statement over in his mind briefly. It wasn't a pleasant situation, but he supposed that it would be good for Hiei to be back in this world for a time. If for no other reason than so Kurama could torment the fire yokai about his sister…. After a minute's silence, a thought occurred to Kurama. "Hiei," he began carefully.

The fire yokai gave the slightest "Hn," to acknowledge that he had heard his name.

"I wonder… would you help me find someone?"

Hiei raised his eyebrows in curiosity. "I'm here five minutes, and you already have errands for me to run?" He observed Kurama for a short time before saying, "Who are you looking for?"

The kitsune handed Hiei the license. "I want to find this girl," he said. "Do you think you could find her?"

"Of course I can find her," Hiei scoffed tossing the license back to the red head. "Don't see why anyone would _want_ to find her. But so long as I'm stuck here…." The yokai disappeared in a flash of black.

Kurama frowned. Hiei was sure to find Akiko. As to whether or not she'd ever be seen alive again….

* * *

Steam rose from the surface of her coffee as she stepped out of the diner into the cold darkness. Akiko took a sip of the liquid, reveling in the temporary warmth it produced. She'd enjoy it while she could; that was the last of her money. And without some identification… well, she was up a creek; that was for sure. 

Sighing, Akiko took another sip of coffee and strode down the sidewalk to the public playground. The weather was getting colder still; she could see her breath condensing in the air. Street lamps were the only outlets of light in the playground. Akiko ambled over to the rusted swings, plopping down into one of them, and carefully snaking her arms around the chains, styrofoam cup still in hand. That was how he found her.

It didn't take long to track her down, especially not with his eyes. He'd followed her since she left the diner; he thought she'd go to the playground: there weren't many other places for her to go this late. She was all alone… if he acted now, he could bring her back easily. And he would've done just that, if he hadn't sensed another presence—a yokai—watching the girl as well.

"Damn it," he hissed as he melted into the night.

He'd just have to keep watching her from afar.

* * *

Hiei examined Akiko from the top of a tree near the swings. Yes, this was he girl Kurama had wanted to find, though he still didn't understand the kitsune's interest in her: as far as Hiei could tell, she was completely normal. Boring, even. Then again, the kitsune's reasons were none of his business. 'Might as well get this over with,' he thought, perturbed. In a flash, he was standing beside the swings, his hands behind his back. 

"Do you want something?" she inquired distantly, her eyes focused on her coffee cup. Instinctual fear was sinking in: this situation was a bit too much like a previous one than she was comfortable with. But she'd sooner take a knife to her heart than admit to her terror.

He frowned at her demeanor. "Someone I know asked me to find you," he replied solemnly. "You'll have to come with me, and be sure to keep up, because there's no way that I'm going through the trouble of tracking you down again."

Well, this guy was a right gentleman, wasn't he? Akiko glared, still focusing on her coffee cup. "I don't want to go with you," she stated wryly, standing up and striding to the entrance of the playground. "You can tell whoever sent you that I said tough luck."

The yokai was suddenly reminded why he was so eager to stay in Makai. Rolling his eyes, Hiei effortlessly beat the girl to the gate and blocked her exit. "Listen, onna," he began threateningly, "I really have no issues with killing you. But like I said, there's someone looking for you, and I told him I'd find you. You can either come willingly, or I can _make_ you come with me."

For the briefest of instants, the girl looked shocked. But she regained composure quickly. "No way am I going with you," she stated, tossing the empty styrofoam cup into the trash can.

Once again, the yokai rolled his eyes impatiently. "Fine," he muttered, more to himself than the girl. "Fine, make things more difficult, then."

Akiko opened her mouth to comment, but forgot what she was going to say. Possibly because it just wasn't important and slipped her mind, but more likely because her feet were no longer on the ground.

"What the hell are you doing?" she screeched, her legs kicking in midair—she had been tossed over the yokai's shoulder. "Put me down!"

"Damn humans," the fire yokai sighed as he and the girl vanished into the night.

* * *

Sending Hiei had been a bad idea, Kurama determined. He should've thought of that from the beginning, really. After all, he knew better than most how volatile Hiei was. 

"Yep, bad idea," the kitsune sighed.

"What was a bad idea?" Hiei's indifferent tone questioned, as he—with the girl still slung over his shoulder—approached Kurama.

Kurama stared at the sight before him for a time, taking in the absurdity of it.

"What?" Hiei questioned, tossing the girl less than gently to the ground.

The kitsune winced slightly as the girl landed. "I'm sorry about him," Kurama apologized sympathetically, helping Akiko to her feet. "He's not quite what you'd call a people person."

"So I gathered," the girl replied with a dark glare in the fire yokai's direction. After dusting the dirt off her clothes, she looked up at Kurama's face. Cocking an eyebrow she asked, "You're the one who was looking for me?"

Smiling, Kurama nodded. "I wanted to give this back to you," he said, handing her the license.

She opened her mouth, intending to thank him, but found herself asking, "You sent the sadist to find me just so you could give me my driver's license back?"

"No," the kitsune said seriously. "I wanted to find you because I thought you needed help. You're not in the best of situations."

Hiei kept up a front of not listening, but he was taking note of everything that was being said now.

The girl narrowed her eyes. "What do you know about my 'situation'?"

"I know that you ran away from home," Kurama responded. "I presume that's because your father abused you?"

Akiko turned away from him. "That's none of your business," she said frigidly.

"No, no it's not," Kurama admitted. "But even so, I want to help you out."

"Can you give me a place to stay?" the girl questioned.

Kurama frowned. "No. I can't do that. But I'm sure Hiei knows of somewhere warm. He can look after you tonight."

Hiei immediately forgot his feigned deafness. "What?"

"My parents will ask too many questions," Kurama responded gravely. "She's safer with you."

"What the hell am I supposed to do with her?" Hiei demanded angrily.

"Oh, I'm sure you'll come up with something," Kurama smiled, leaving the girl and the yokai alone.

"Damn him," Hiei hissed, "always getting me involved with stupid humans…."

**

* * *

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**Author's Notes: **Well. That was fun. I hope I did better with this chapter than I did with chapter two shudders. I don't know if the part that begins with "It didn't take long..." was clear. Hmm. Let me know what you guys think about that, please. Anyway, I did an outline of this fic, and from what I've got now, it's going to be eleven chapters long. Like I said earlier, I've already got the last chapter written, so I can easily finish this thing. But how well it's written and how quickly it's completed will depend on my review numbers. It would be doing me a great favor to recommend this story to others insert innocent smile. Well, I'll start chapter four this weekend—it may take a bit longer, though: this next week will be pretty busy. Anywho, thanks for reading! Please review!


	4. One Thousand Nights

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." ANGSTY Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes: **Well, I just burnt my tongue on my coffee…. That has no effect on the story whatsoever; I just thought that I'd state that. Okay, so reviews have been kind of… lacking? I don't know… maybe my expectations are too high. Well, maybe as the story progresses, more people will be interested. If you've read my bio, then you know that there's a possibility for a sequel to this fic. Well, what I've decided that I'm going to do is go ahead and put a preview for a sequel at the end of this fic, and see what the reviewer response is. But that's still a ways off yet, so let's not get ahead of ourselves. Now, to my dear reviewers:

**samuraiduck27**: You're so sweet! I'm glad you like this fic so much! And I promise that the "hmm" yokai will be explained. Just not yet. .

**demonchild22**: Hiei's my favorite, too. Thanks for reading and reviewing the fic; I hope that my work satisfies!

**Moojuice Nne**: Erm… I hadn't planned on any hotdog roasting in this fic… it kind of seems out of place. It would be interesting though… I can just see Hiei setting a random public park on fire….

**Taylor:** Thanks so much for the review! I hope you like the rest of the fic!

Thanks so much, my dears!

**Part Four: One Thousand Nights**

* * *

"Fifty-six, fifty-seven, fifty-eight, fifty-nine, sixty, six—"

"For God's sake, onna, shut up," Hiei snarled at Akiko as she lay curled up on the ground, trying to sleep. "What the hell are you doing, anyways?"

She turned onto her back to look at him as he reclined in a tree limb above her head. "Counting sheep," she replied softly, pulling her chin to her chest. "Didn't you ever count sheep?"

"I generally avoid doing things that don't make sense."

Akiko sighed. "You're really not friendly, are you?"

The fire yokai snorted. "You're a bit slow on the uptake," he scoffed.

She rolled onto her side and pulled her knees as close as she could to herself, rolling her body up into a tight little ball. "Are you sure we can't find some building that we can stay in?"

"You ask that every night," Hiei sighed. "Do we ever stay inside?" He heard the girl softly mumble something to herself. "Did you just say that you're _scared_?" Hiei questioned coldly. Silence met his question; Akiko curled herself up as tightly as she possibly could. "Honestly, even you can't be stupid enough to be afraid of the dark, can you?"

"I'm not afraid of the dark," Akiko whispered. "It's just… all of the really horrible stuff that ever happened to me happened when I was outside after midnight. But I guess that really doesn't matter to you, does it?"

"What 'horrible stuff' could've happened to you?" Hiei scoffed. "What do you even know about horrible things?"

Akiko studied him for a few moments a slight frown on her face. "I don't want to tell you," she finally said. "You wouldn't care, anyways."

Hiei rolled his eyes. "Why Kurama ever had to find you…. Look, I'll make a deal with you," he said, meeting the girl's emerald eyes. "Tell me what happened to you—how you ended up where you are and… and we'll stay inside somewhere tomorrow night." Akiko didn't respond. "And," Hiei continued softly—almost gently—"I'll tell you how I ended up here."

Curiosity gleamed in her eyes, and she pulled herself up into a sitting position. "Do you really mean that?" she inquired. "You'll tell me about yourself?"

Hiei nodded reluctantly.

"Okay," Akiko said. "I'll start with my dad."

* * *

Old Mac Donald had a farm, Eiye eiye oh

And on that farm he had some—

Kurama pulled his cell phone out of his pocket, flipped it open and held it to his ear. "Hello?"

"What's up, Kurama?" Yusuke's voice asked.

"Nothing, really," the kitsune responded. "Why? Has something come up?"

"No, nothing like that," Yusuke replied. "Hey did you know Hiei's back?"

"Yeah. I spoke with him a week ago."

Yusuke chuckled. "And here I thought ol' three eyes was never gonna come back here. What got him to change his mind, do you know?"

The kitsune winced. "It's not really a pleasant circumstance," he said slowly. "From what he told me, most of Makai thinks that he murdered Mukuro, and now he's got quite the price on his head."

"Man," Yusuke responded. "_Did_ Hiei kill Mukuro?"

"As to that," Kurama stated, "I have no idea."

"Big surprise… he never was much for bearing his soul. Hey, Kurama, what do you say we meet at the café on Third and have coffee? Catch up on things."

The kitsune looked at his watch. "At this hour?"

"Yeah, why not?"

Kurama shrugged. "Alright. What time?"

"My shift here ends in ten minutes, so we'll say twenty minutes from now."

"Okay. I'll meet you there."

"Oh, and Kurama, one more thing: can you buy? My paycheck doesn't come till Friday. Thanks, BYE!"

By the time Kurama got his mouth open to reply, Yusuke had hung up and only a dial tone remained.

"Well," the kitsune sighed, returning his phone to his pocket, "if that's not typical Yusuke…."

* * *

"So tell me," Yusuke said as he drained his coffee cup. "What's Hiei been up to since he got here? Nothing that'll get him arrested, I hope."

"No, no," Kurama chuckled. "He's stayed out of trouble, from what I can tell. Actually, he's been looking after someone for me."

"Hiei playing guard dog?" Yusuke questioned, raising his eyebrows. "That's a new one. Who's he looking after?"

"It's kind of a long story, Yusuke."

The black haired man shrugged. "It's not like I don't have the time."

Half a smile creased the kitsune's face. "Alright. I ran into this girl two weeks ago; she couldn't be more than fifteen or sixteen. I can't really say why, but she gave me an odd feeling. And aside from all that, she really needed some help: I don't think her home life was too great. So I asked Hiei to find her, and now he's keeping an eye on her for me."

"I'll bet he's thrilled with that," Yusuke laughed. "But this girl. What do you think she is? A yokai, maybe?"

Kurama shook his head. "No, I don't think she's a yokai. But she's certainly not a normal human."

Yusuke leaned his chair back on two legs. "I'm supposed to meet with Koenma in an hour. Why don't you come along? Maybe he'll know what the deal with this girl is."

"You know, Yusuke, that's not a bad idea."

* * *

Koenma sat cross-legged in his desk, eyes closed in thought. "Akiko Mishimi…" he mumbled. "I know that name." The deity opened his eyes. "Kurama, you're familiar with the 'angels,' aren't you?"

"Angels?" Yusuke questioned skeptically. "Like white robes and halos?"

Kurama shook his head. "They're where that idea came from, I'm sure. But they're not quite as benevolent as the storybook angels. Well, not anymore, at least."

"They've secluded themselves from all other life forms for centuries," Koenma stated. "Ever since Paciencia left."

"So what's all that have to do with Akiko?" Yusuke asked.

"Paciencia and Akiko," Koenma began slowly, "are the same person.

"Paciencia was one of the priestesses of the angels. Back when they still lived in the human world. It used to be just like the stories you hear of angels—they guarded humans and performed benevolent acts, all kinds of great things."

"So what happened? What made them change?" demanded Yusuke.

Koenma heaved a sigh. "A great war began in the human world, several centuries ago. A group of the angels were killed in the crossfire. As you can imagine, the angels weren't too pleased with that. They used their powers to end the war by completely obliterating all of the participants; then they withdrew to a separate reality. Paciencia was against this action. She believed that humans—and demons too, but that's beside the point—were basically good; they only did terrible things in extreme circumstances. She refused to abandon the humans, so she stayed in the human world.

"Angels' bodies don't function like humans' do. They feed of the purity of other angels—they have to live in groups to survive. And Paciencia was left alone in the human world. It wasn't long before she died, but she had enough power to insure reincarnation. She continuously returns to life as a human, and will do so until she can somehow convince the others of her kind that she was right. And Akiko—"

"Is Paciencia's reincarnated form," Kurama sighed. "That would explain why I couldn't put my finger on what she was. But what now? What should we do about her?"

"Bring her to me," Koenma stated firmly. "I'll tell her what she is, and she can decide what she plans to do."

* * *

"So," Hiei began, his eyes closed in thought and his mind trying to decipher all that the girl had just told him. "You were abandoned, abused, raped, a runaway, sold, and then ran away again?"

Wiping the tear streaks from her face, Akiko nodded. It had been easier to tell him everything than she had thought it would be: it was almost as if… as if maybe he _did_ somehow care.

The fire yokai studied her for a moment, noting for the first time her fragile but determined appearance. "We have something in common, you know," he said plainly, jumping easily from the tree limb and landing beside her. "Both of our lives have really sucked."

A ghost of a smile flickered across the girl's face. "So, are you going to spill your guts now? You said you would."

"And I will," Hiei smirked. "Just not tonight. You need to sleep." He tossed his black cloak over her as she lie back down.

**

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**

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**Author's Notes:** Yeah. Don't ask me why Kurama's cell phone ring is "Old Mac Donald." So this was the "transition" chapter, I guess. Next chapter's going to be interesting, I think. Normally I would make some more comments here, but it's like, ten after seven in the morning on a Tuesday, so… yeah. I'll start part five later today; hopefully it will be ready to post by the weekend. Read and review, please! 


	5. Silent Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." ANGSTY Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes:** Writer's block really, really sucks. Just thought I'd let you know that. Yeah. I really have nothing much to add here. :shrug: Just enjoy the fic, I guess. Oh, and I must not forget my wonderful reviewers:

**samuraiduck27: **Ha, that's what I was thinking when I wrote that part. I'm glad you like the angel thing. Thanks for being so sweet!

**darkXdemon15: **Yeah, you're right. It's not as angsty as the summary makes it out to be. Yet. I promise, I'll do my best not to disappoint! Thanks for reviewing; I hope you keep reading the fic.

**randomchick: **I'm glad you like the fic! Hopefully the rest of it will be just as good.

**Suntiger: **Thanks for the great review! Oh, and I always check out the bios for my reviewers. I like to see who reads my stuff. .

**demonchild22: **Yeah, sorry if the whole "Old Mac Donald" thing was confusing. It was supposed to be Kurama's cell phone ring. I'd thought it was a bit unclear, but I didn't do anything about it. My fault.

And so it goes.

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho. Or anything else, for that matter.

**Part Five: Silent Night**

* * *

Akiko was still asleep and clutching the fabric of Hiei's cloak that had been serving as her blanket when Kurama found the pair. The kitsune eyed the sleeping girl curiously, but one warning glare from Hiei was enough to tell him that however she'd ended up with Hiei's cloak was none of his business.

"What do you want?" Hiei demanded stonily.

Kurama glanced at the sleeping girl. "She needs to hear this too. I think we should wake her."

"Let her sleep," Hiei said. "I'll tell her what she needs to know."

Kurama frowned slightly. "Alright," he relented. "But it's a complicated story."

"Hn. What else is new?"

* * *

This job was getting more difficult than he had thought it could be. It seemed almost as though this girl was never alone; he should've just taken her two weeks ago when he had the chance.

"Damn her," he whispered. "She always did like to travel in groups."

He listened carefully to the conversation between the two yokai that were with the girl. As soon as the red head said the name Koenma, he smirked, his worries erased. So the rekai prince knew who the girl really was? That would certainly make things easier. Now all that need be done was to convince the deity to send her back where she belonged.

* * *

"She's the reincarnated form of this angel, Hiei," Kurama stated. "Koenma wants her brought to him so that he can give her her options, and, unless I'm mistaken, he intends to persuade her to return to the land that she came from.

"And when she dies, what then?" Hiei questioned. "If she's caught in this reincarnation cycle until she can prove that humans are good by nature, she'll keep being reborn until the end of time. There are no humans in Tierra de Ángeles."

"Honestly, I don't know what will happen," Kurama sighed. "But I think Koenma does. You should bring her to him." The kitsune began to walk off.

"Kurama," Hiei halted him. "Your parents are out of town, right?" Caught unawares by the question, Kurama nodded. "Good," the fire yokai said. "We're staying at you place tonight, then."

"Why?"

The fire yokai gave Kurama an icy glare. "Because we are. We'll be by at midnight. Leave a window unlocked."

Still a bit taken aback by all this, Kurama nodded and left, heading in the direction of his home.

Hiei turned his attention back to the girl. "An angel, huh?" he asked, his eyes fixed on her sleeping face. "Well, I guess that means that I'll have to keep my promise to you, won't I?"

* * *

"I really don't see why you thought your coming here necessary," Koenma stated frigidly, his chin resting on his hand. "I was going to request that she return to Tierra de Ángeles anyway."

"Even so," a deep, musical voice replied, "I thought it best that I negotiate Paciencia's return personally. She's my sister, after all, and our father sent me to find her."

Koenma nodded. "Yes, I thought as much. Your father must be keeping tabs on her reincarnations as well, then?"

The other man nodded. "It would save you a great deal of trouble to send my sister back home where she belongs."

"I'm aware of that," Koenma snapped. "As I said, your visit here was unnecessary. I have every intention of sending your sister back. Truth be told, her presence here will only cause problems. When her subconscious takes over…." The deity's voice trailed off momentarily. "Believe me, Fuerza, your sister will be returning. You have my assurances of that."

* * *

Bang. Bang. SMASH.

"God, Hiei, did you have to break the window?"

"Damn it, I told him to keep one unlocked."

"Yeah, uh-huh. Most people just knock, ya know."

"There's no point in waking him up."

"Oh, but kicking me in the ribs to wake me up and then dragging me God knows where in the middle of the night is fine, is it?"

Kurama awoke to the sound of Hiei and his charge bickering; it took him a minute to register what exactly was going on.

The kitsune reluctantly pulled himself out of bed, walked to the hallway, and began fumbling around for the light switch. As the lights flickered on, he climbed down the stairs into the living room. When he reached the bottom, Hiei was sitting alone on the couch.

"Um… where's Akiko?" Kurama questioned.

"Cleaning up the glass," the fire yokai replied with a nonchalant shrug.

"Shouldn't you be helping her?"

"Why? She's got hands; she can do it herself."

"But you broke the window."

"And?"

"All the glass is up," Akiko announced as she gave Hiei a slight glare and plopped down on the couch next to him. She noticed Kurama sitting in his P.J.s on the armchair across the room and cocked her head to one side. "This is your house then, right?" The kitsune nodded. "Is it alright if I use your shower?"

"Sure. It's down that hallway, second door on the left," Kurama replied.

The girl thanked him and left; both boys watched her go.

"You haven't told her what she is yet, have you?" Kurama asked once the girl was out of sight. "Hiei, she's got to know."

"She will know," Hiei retorted. "When she needs to."

"Why haven't you told her?"

For a moment, there was a lingering silence, then, the fire yokai gave a soft "Hn," and disappeared.

* * *

Droplets of water dripped from the damp ends of Akiko's shoulder length tresses as she toweled it dry. Stretching and bearing the midriff that her pajama shirt would have otherwise covered, and left the bathroom and sauntered back into the living room. She collapsed gracelessly onto the couch, her exhaustion finally catching up with her.

By now the house was dark: Kurama had gone back to be and Hiei was nowhere in sight. Briefly wondering where her guardian could've gone to, Akiko curled up into a sleeping position.

"Hey, wake up," Hiei's voice said, shoving her off the couch. She landed on the floor with a ceremonious thud.

"Damn it, Hiei, that's twice tonight!" she complained, pulling herself into a sitting position on the wood floor. "You'd better have a good reason for this!"

"Is humanity basically good or basically evil?" he demanded.

Akiko blinked. "What?"

"Are humans good or evil? What do you think?"

The girl thought for a moment. "I think that some humans are bad or have bad qualities, but mostly I think they're good.

The fire yokai stared at her, assessing her answer. "After all that's happened to you," he began, "all that's been done to you by human hands, you still think them redeemable?"

"Well, yeah. You can't just condemn a whole race for the mistakes of a few."

Hiei watched her calculatingly.

"Is something wrong?" the girl questioned gently. "I get this feeling that there's something really important going on, and I'm the only one that doesn't know about it and-"

The fire yokai held a hand to her mouth to silence her. "I was born on a floating island," he stated. "In the demon realm. A child of a forbidden relation between a fire yokai and a koorime."

At first, Akiko really had no idea what he was talking about.

_Tell me what happened to you—how you ended up where you are …_

Wait… could that be….

"_And… I'll tell you how I ended up here."_

Finally reminded of what the yokai had said, Akiko moved his hand from her mouth and sat quietly next to him, listening to his voice telling her his story.

**

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**Author's notes:** Hmm… that was almost borderline fluffy. Weird. Okay. So I hope this chapter was good. I changed my mind about fifty times in the course of writing it. :sigh: Alright, I'm looking at the outline here, and I've got to say, the really angsty chapters are coming up fast. Just some forewarning to you. Wow. This fic is going so much faster than any of my others have. I wish my original works were progressing this well. :wince: Yeah. Erm… I have nothing left to say, really. Please, please, please review! 


	6. Seeing in the Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." ANGSTY Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes: **Yeah. My original draft of this chapter sucked, so I'm totally revamping it. Because I'm the author; I can do that. :shrug: Oh well. Yeah. I hope you guys like this chapter: it's been hell to write (and rewriting it will probably be even worse). But I always look forward to hearing from people like:

**samuraiduck27: **Yeah, I have to agree with you; getting kicked in the ribs doesn't serve as the best wake-up call. But really, how great can Hiei's people skills be? Besides, it takes a lot to get Akiko to wake up. Thanks for reviewing!

**Taylor:** Yeah, I thought that might be it. That's cool. I'm glad you think so highly of the fic! Keep reading and reviewing.

Thanks so much, guys. Your reviews really encourage me to keep working on the fic.

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own anything. Nothing. Period.

**Part Six: Seeing in the Night**

* * *

Akiko heaved a sigh as she leaned against the trunk of the tree that was to be her shelter that night: Kurama's parents had come back from their trip, so Akiko and Hiei were back outside. 

And it really sucked, too.

But there was really nothing that could be done about it. Besides, the weather was warming up again: light zephyrs replaced the frigid wind gusts that had been shaking the few stubborn remaining leave from the trees. Silently gazing at the star-filled midnight sky, she pulled her thin knit sweater tight around her thin shoulders; she felt herself slowly dozing off, the sky becoming darker and darker….

..O.O..

_"Such slaughter cannot be permitted."_

_"If we remain as we are, we'll all be dead by the week's end."_

_"We've no choice. I say we leave Ningenkai."_

_"But where will we go? Rekai has no room for us and the yokai of Makai would kill us sooner than look at us."_

_"There's nowhere else to go. It seems we are doomed to disaster."_

_"We will create our own world. A land of angels. _Tierra des Ángeles. _What say you?"_

_"It would be safer than staying here. But what of the human's and their war? Are we to leave them to drive themselves to extinction?"_

_"No. But we will give no one involved a pleasant end. Death is to be their reward. The last they will know of us. What say you, Paciencia?"_

_"I say you may do as you please. I choose to remain in the Human World."_

_"Are you mad? You will die here on your own!"_

_"Then I will die here. I'm staying."_

"_Are the humans really worth your life, Paciencia? Even after they killed your kind?"_

_"One mistake does not merit damnation. And we, who offer counsel to the good, should know that. Their nature is pure. Corruption is a risk present everywhere, and if they are abandoned, the humans will fall to it. They deserve better."_

_"They are murderers and hypocrites, Paciencia. They are not worth the time or effort. And they are certainly not worth losing eternity, becoming mortal."_

_"Think what you like. I am staying here, and that's final."_

_"Fine then! Die cursed among them! And may you burn in hell for your betrayal."_

_"They humans are redeemable. And I will prove it to you. Just wait."_

..O.O..

Cold sweat dripped down Akiko's face and back as she woke with a start. She wiped the perspiration off with the back of her hand, her breath coming in short pants and a haunted look in her emerald eyes.

"Just a dream," she whispered to herself, gently closing her eyes. "Only a dream." And she began to slip into slumber once again, not knowing that two crimson eyes were watching her from the tree limbs above and pondering what dark dream could have disturbed her so.

* * *

Fuerza smirked, watching his sister toss in her sleep. The memories he was implanting must have been working. 

"Keep dreaming, Sister," he whispered mockingly to the night air. "What you dream can't harm you."

Laughing darkly, the angel disappeared into the night.

* * *

She didn't sleep very well the rest of the night. The dream kept haunting her sleep, lurking in her mind. Not that sitting wide awake under the tree helped her escape the dream. It was just so _vivid_. 

"Man," she muttered to herself. "I'm gonna be a total wreck."

The fire yokai, still reclining in the treetop above her head narrowed his eyes. He hadn't slept much either; he'd been watching her ever since the first time she woke during the night. He had a shrewd idea as to what had caused her to wake so suddenly, but he hoped he was wrong. He really didn't want to tell her.

Akiko's jaw cracked with a yawn as she pulled herself to her feet. Once in a standing position, she knocked on the tree trunk as if it were a door. "Hey, Boss," she called to Hiei, "We going to breakfast?"

Wordlessly, the yokai jumped from the tree and landed on his feet beside her. "What kept waking you up last night?" he demanded without a moment's preamble.

"You were watching me sleep?" the girl asked, cocking an eyebrow quizzically. "No offense, Hiei, but that's kind of creepy."

He rolled his eyes. "Just answer the question."

"No." She looked away from him. "It's really nothing. Just a stupid dream. That's all."

"What was the dream about?" the yokai asked softly.

Akiko still did not look at him, and she did not answer.

"Tell me," he demanded quietly. "I won't hurt you to tell me."

* * *

"So Hiei still hasn't brought her by here?" Kurama questioned. "That's odd. I would've expected him to be glad to relinquish responsibility for her." 

"Well, this is an odd case," Koenma responded wearily. "I knew it would be. And now the angels are demanding her that the girl be sent to them." The deity rested hid head in his hands. "It's a delicate situation. Hiei can't wait much longer to bring her here. If you see him, tell him that."

"Surely he already knows that."

"Did he make any indication as to when he would bring her?"

"No. I don't think he's even told her of her true nature yet."

"That's not good. Perhaps you should go find her and bring her here. That is, if Hiei doesn't bring her within the next twenty-four hours."

"I'll go find them. Maybe I can convince Hiei to tell her. She'd probably rather hear something like this from him than from me."

* * *

The gates of Rekai loomed ominously in front of the two of them, covering both of them in its vast shadow. 

"So let me try this again," Akiko said, gawking at the great blue doors. "I'm some weird being's reincarnation, and you brought me to the gates of death so that some prince guy can tell me what's gonna happen?"

"Yeah, basically," the yokai answered bluntly as the giant blue doors swung slowly open, admitting them into Rekai.

"Somehow, I don't think I'm going to like this," the girl whispered, following Hiei into the Spirit World.

* * *

Koenma eyed Akiko shrewdly over his desk, serenely taking in her appearance. "I realize that this must be difficult for you," he stated. "To be told that you're not really what you think you are and that you have to leave the land you call home can only—"

"Really suck," she finished for him, twirling a strand of her auburn hair around her finger. "I don't mind the whole 'not human' thing, but why do I have to leave? Why can't I stay here?"

"That's a complicated story," Koenma sighed. "To put it plainly, your people demand that you return to them. And denying them what they want wouldn't be a wise move for either of us."

* * *

He couldn't hear all of what they were saying: the doors of Koenma's office did a better job of stifling the sound than he would have thought. But that didn't really make much difference. He had a close enough idea as to what was being said.

Muttering an indifferent, "Hn," Hiei ambled back to the gates. She was safe now; he's kept his promise to Kurama.

And now, he was leaving.

* * *

"Okay, so I have to go back," Akiko relented. "How do I get there?"

"There will be a portal opened for you. And you'll need an escort, just to be safe. I'll contact Yusuke; he'll be—"

"That's not necessary," the girl stated. "I'll just ask Hiei to take me there." And before the deity had a chance to discourage this action, the girl was halfway to the gates.

Hiei had barely made it to the doors when Akiko caught his arm. "I have to go to Tierra des Ángeles," she said blandly.

Hiei didn't look at her. "Hn. I know."

"I want you to come with me," she whispered.

"No way."

"Why not?"

"I'm done babysitting you. I got you here safely. That's all I was supposed to do."

"I need someone to go with me. I know you won't let me get hurt, so I want you to come with me. Please?"

He was going to tell her to leave him the hell alone when he got a good look at her face. Tears were forming in her eyes. He was making her cry.

"Fine," he sighed. Damn honor code….

When Akiko let go of his arm, the yokai began ambled back to Koenma's office.

A bit taken aback, the girl called after him, "Hey! What're you doing? The portal's the other way."

"I'll meet you there," Hiei called back, not turning around. "I've got something of my own to take care of first."

She watched him go, her head cocked slightly to one side. "I'll never understand that guy," she said finally, pulling open doors as well as her diminutive frame could and heading out to the portal.

**

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**Author's Notes:** Yeah. That's much better than the first draft. I'm really sorry for the delay: lots of stuff has been going on around here lately. But it should get better. Chapter seven is already being drafted, but it might take a while to finish, because I'm going to take some time to work on my original novel this week (_118 Swancott Road_; if you're interested in hearing some about it, send an email to the address in my profile), but I should still hopefully havechapter sevenposted before the beginning of March. Well, much thanks for reading this chapter; I hope it was okay. Please review! 


	7. Lost in the Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes:** Yeah…. I'm really sorry that this update took so long! I lost my outline, rewrote it, lost it again, rewrote it again, and lost it. That's the last time I ever try to write while I'm traveling. But it's all good now, because I have an outline and I know where I'm going. And I have a Starbucks frappuccino. Yay frappunccino. And let's not forget that I have wonderful readers like

**Asaake: **Thanks for showing interest! I hope you like the rest of the fic.

**Black Hanyou Rahvin: **Glad you like the story! Keep reading and reviewing!

**Littleliar: **Yeah, it was nice of him to go with her. To answer the question as to why he went along (I guess I didn't make this as clear as I thought I had), he thought he'd made her cry. And even Hiei doesn't like it when girls cry (and I site episode 25 as proof).

**samuraiduck27: **You are so sweet! I'm glad you like this fic so much! I hope I don't disappoint you.

And so on, so forth.

Oh, by the way, the section in italics is a dream.

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own anything. That's kind of how it works when you're unemployed.

**Part Seven: Lost in the Night**

* * *

It doesn't snow often in places that have such warm climates as are found in Japan, so it's not unusual for residents of such places to be thrilled at the sight of the white powder on the ground.

But after seeing nothing but a snow-covered landscape for a week, anyone would get tired of it.

"God, why did I have to come from such a cold-loving race?" Akiko complained. "I swear I'm turning blue over here."

The fire yokai rolled his eyes in response. God, humans were whiny. Despite his exasperation with the girl, Hiei stopped their progress through the snow so that he could make certain that Akiko was alright. It'd be his ass if she died before they got to Tierra des Ángeles. And aside from that, he'd been watching out for her so long… well, it'd be a waste to ignore her. Not to mention how guilty he'd end up feeling.

"I swear, if I end up with frost bite I'm going straight back to the human world," the girl muttered under her breath. The words had no sooner escaped her mouth than she felt a soft warmth draped around her shoulders. A bit confused, she glanced over to her companion who was now without his cloak. "Thanks," she whispered, pulling the fabric tightly around her thin frame.

Hiei made no response; he merely continued ahead of her towards the center gates of Tierra des Ángeles. Even though he wasn't sure if he wanted to take her there.

* * *

Nighttime came early in the plains outside of Tierra des Ángeles; the sky faded to a royal violet by mid afternoon, and, since Akiko wasn't comfortable with traveling in the darkness, the pair of travelers stopped to rest until it was light again.

The girl sat curled up next to a tree with Hiei's cloak wrapped tightly around her. 'I don't like it here,' she thought to herself, pulling her knees up to her chin. 'I _really_ don't like it here.'

To make sure that Akiko stayed warm, Hiei had started a small fire; shadows cast from the flames danced around Akiko, making her almost appear to be burning in the fire, rather than staring into it. Truthfully, that was almost how she felt—like she was burning, dying. Visions of deaths—her death and that of a hundred others—danced around her consciousness. Gradually, her mind slipped into darkness.

**..O.O..**

_"Koenma-sama?" the ogre called to his master, in a voice barely above a whisper._

_"What is it now?"_

_"It's Paciencia, Sir," the ogre answered. "She's dying._

_"Send her in," the prince commanded_

_"Koenma—" a woman's fragile voice called as a petite beauty entered the office._

_"You can live if you go back to them. You know that," Koenma told her without any preamble._

_"I know. But that is not why I came. If it is either immortality as a beast or death as a fallen angel, then I would chose death a thousand times. I have… a favor to ask of you."_

_Koenma's features soften with pity for this broken girl. "I'll do what I can for you."_

_"When I die, bring me back to life as a human."_

_"Paciencia, I'm sure if that's very wise—"_

_"Please. I've never asked assistance from you before. All I want is a chance to be an advocate for the inhabitants of the three worlds. To prove what I said to my people. Please, Koenma. Grant this dying woman's request."_

_"Alright. You have my word that you'll be brought back. But you won't remember this life. That's the only way it can be allowed."_

_"Then that will do. Thank you, Koenma."_

_"I believe it's owed to you, Paciencia."_

_Giving a melancholy smile, the angel turned towards to door, her hand resting on the handle. She suddenly turned back to the deity. "One more favor, Koenma?" The toddler prince nodded. "There is a particular meadow in the human world. I don't think I have the strength to get there myself. If you could have me transported there, I'd be eternally grateful."_

_"Rest well, Paciencia," Koenma said as his ki filled the room, transporting the broken angel to her meadow._

_The grass was soft on her fragile skin; the periwinkle shade of the sky made for a pleasant sight._

_What a wonderful place to die._

_"Miss? Miss are you alright?" the voice of a child asked her. "Are you hurt?"_

_Amber eyes flickered to the face of a small boy. The embodiment of innocence. The reason she had stayed. "I'm fine, little one," she replied, her voice dimming and breaking. "Tell me, child," she began, taking a shuddering breath, "are people good? Are people worth saving?"_

_The child appeared confused for a moment, cocking his head to one side in thought. "People are good," he said confidently after a few moments. "People try to be good."_

_Paciencia smiled softly and whispered, "Yes…yes, I think so too." Her hand reached up and touched the little boy's face. "Thank you," she said to him with the last breath she had. _

_Her hand fell to the ground and her eyes closed for the last time._

**..O.O..**

A small but audible gasp escaped Akiko's lips as she woke from her dream. She was shaking and, despite the freezing temperature, cold perspiration ran down her face and neck.

Hiei was by her side now, watching her calculatingly. "What's wrong?" he asked, sounding more curious than compassionate.

She didn't want to tell him; what would he think of her if he knew how easily these nightmares had scared her? Before she could stop them, tears formed in her eyes and began sliding down her cheeks. The fire yokai stared at her, the slightest hint of worry showing in his eyes not yet piercing the rest of his stoic mask. She didn't want to tell him. But she couldn't stop herself.

"I'm scared, Hiei," she whispered. "I don't want to go to this place. Something inside me," she put a hand to her heart, "is telling me that nothing good can come from me going to these people. It's got me so confused…. Everything is different now. I'm not who I thought I was. Now… now it's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…."

The yokai continued to watch her for a moment, drinking in just how brave this frail-looking girl must really be to go through the hell that her life had thrust upon her. She didn't deserve all of this.

As much to his surprise as to hers, Hiei cupped Akiko's face in his hands, wiping her tears away with his thumbs. Then, as suddenly as this uncharacteristic show of tenderness had begun, Hiei had disappeared into the upper limbs of the tree above Akiko's head, and he left her with what safety he could offer.

* * *

Blindingly white gates engraved with the forms of cherubs and the busts of great philanthropists long dead and forgotten greeted the pair of travelers at the entrance to the capitol district of Tierra des Ángeles. Akiko could not repress a shiver as these gates swung noiselessly open before them. She gave Hiei a worried glance; he did not meet her eyes, but pushed her gently forward, his hand resting on the small of her back in silent assurance that he was right behind her.

"Ah, dear sister, it has been so very long," a masculine voice greeted sweetly—too sweetly—as the girl stepped past the gates. A tall, broad shouldered man stepped out from the shadows cast by the gates. He was smiling at Akiko and holding out his hand for her to take. She did not move to do such a thing.

"I see," he chuckled knowingly. "You do not remember me. I wouldn't have expected you to. I am your brother, Fuerza." He smiled again, this time coldly. "It's been a long time, Paciencia."

**

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* * *

Author's Notes: Ok, that took WAY longer than I intended. I'm really sorry for that delay, guys! I hope you can forgive me. I should be able to get one more chapter up this week, and then I'm going to try to get back to my weekly update schedule. Guess what. This was chapter seven of eleven. There are only four more chapters. Spooky, huh? My goal is to have this finished by Cinqo de Mayo, but hopefully it will be done before then. Who knows? Well, I hope this chapter was worth the wait! Read and review, please.: **Ok, that took WAY longer than I intended. I'm really sorry for that delay, guys! I hope you can forgive me. I should be able to get one more chapter up this week, and then I'm going to try to get back to my weekly update schedule. Guess what. This was chapter seven of eleven. There are only four more chapters. Spooky, huh? My goal is to have this finished by Cinqo de Mayo, but hopefully it will be done before then. Who knows? Well, I hope this chapter was worth the wait! Read and review, please. 


	8. Fall of the Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes:** Hmm… I don't understand why my ending author's notes keep posting twice…. Freaky. Hmm…I finally discovered LAUNCHcast radio, and now I'm addicted. :sigh: I really don't have all that much to say. So I think I'll just thank my reviewers now!

**samuraiduck27: **I'm glad you thought the fluff was good! That was really the hardest part to write—I'm usually so awful at it! Thanks for the encouragement!

**LonelyInDarkness: **Thank you! I was going for that effect. I hope you like the rest of the fic.

**Moojuice Nne: **Yes, yes, you were right; it worked. As to the Cinqo vs Cinco thing… who knows? The spell check feature doesn't recognize either of them. But then, we all know how… intelligent spell check is.

And that's it.

Oh, and the thing with italics from the last chapter still applies, ok? Good.

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho. How much clearer can I make it?

**Part Eight: Fall of Night**

* * *

Hiei heaved a sigh and leaned against the wall of what Fuerza had called the "Sitio de la sangre." Whatever that meant. This place really didn't make a whole lot of sense to the yokai. But he really didn't have much choice but to go along with what the angel told him. After all, he had made a deal with Koenma.

**..O.O..**

_Koenma narrowed his eyes at the fire yokai in his office. "I'm still not entirely sure about all of this," he said skeptically. "You're volunteering to watch over Akiko? Pardon my saying so, but that's really not like you, Hiei. I want some assurance."_

_"Suit yourself," Hiei sneered. "But it's unnecessary. I've been watching her this long, haven't I?"_

_"That's not what concerns me. You know the history surrounding this situation, correct?"_

_Hiei nodded, frowning._

_"And she has no doubt told you of the memories she has been reliving. I believe that Paciencia is awakening within her, and that she doesn't want to return to the angels. I just want to be sure that you will take her to Tierra des Ángeles no matter what."_

_"And how do you plan to get that assurance. It's clear that you don't trust me."_

_"If I were to make a deal with you… perhaps then my mind could be at ease."_

_"Go on; I'm listening."_

_"I understand that there have been some problems for you in Makai as of late. You are being held responsible for the death of Mukuro. If Rekai was to step in—not to clear the path for you completely, but to do enough that you could return and reclaim your position easily enough…. What do you say?"_

_"If I just take her to Tierra des Ángeles…"_

_"Everything will be as it was before."_

_The yokai thought for a moment. "Alright. She'll get to Tierra des Ángeles. You have my word. If that means anything to you."_

_"In this case, it does."_

**..O.O..**

He narrowed his eyes, glaring at the ground. This place made him uncomfortable. That was probably the intention. After all, the whole reason the angels came here was to escape the influences of creatures like him.

A shriek of pain coming from behind the door that Hiei had been waiting outside. Knowing that the cry could only have come from Akiko, Hiei knocked the door open, pulling his katana out of its sheath.

Akiko was sitting on the floor, blood pouring from a long slit that had been drawn into her arm. A second glance found Fuerza holding a blood-tipped dagger at the girl's wrist, preparing to slice it open.

He really wasn't sure how it happened, but somehow, Hiei had skewered the dagger wielding angel on the tip of his katana. When Hiei pulled the sword out of Fuerza, the angel fell with a sickening thump to the ground.

Stepping over the dying man in the floor, Hiei kneeled beside Akiko, examining her arm to see what kind of attention her wound might need. Akiko was staring at the body a few feet away from her, her face pale. Without a word, she pulled away from the yokai and ambled over to her dying brother.

"Fuerza," she whispered, "can you still hear me?"

The slightest gurgling came from the body.

"I'm going to help you, Fuerza."

* * *

Koenma's eyes snapped open. He had fallen asleep at his desk—not uncommon when one works as much as the Rekai prince does. But the dream that woke him… that was a bit uncommon. He saw things that he had never experienced, though the dream had the mien of a memory. But if not his memories, then whose were they.

The answer to his question came out of his mouth before he had a chance to ask it.

"Paciencia…."

* * *

Kurama answered the phone on the second ring, wondering who would be calling him so late.

"Hello?"

"Hey Kurama. It's Kuwabara."

"Kuwabara. You do realize that it's three in the morning, right?"

"Yeah. Listen, I just talked to Yusuke. We've got a job. He said Koenma's got to transport us somewhere immediately."

Kurama narrowed his eyes. "I'll be right there."

* * *

The ruckus outside of the room caught Hiei's attention. It sounded almost like a fight.

"It's Kurama and the others," Akiko said softly. "The angels will have called mercenaries to keep them away. They'll need your help." The girl looked at him, her eyes holding the wisdom of an old woman. "Go to them."

A bit confused, Hiei left the girl in the room with her brother so that he could hopefully save his former companions' asses.

Akiko watched him go, a melancholy expression on her face, before turning to her brother's lifeless form. Resting a hand on his smooth forehead, the girl began to emit a soft white glow from her hand. The blood pooling around Fuerza began to return to the body from which it was spilt and the stab wound slowly began to close.

Fuerza felt warmth returning to his body slowly but steadily, starting with his head and coursing through to the rest of his body. When he had the strength, he opened his eyes to see what was happening to him.

"Paciencia?" he questioned weakly. "What… why?"

The girl did not answer him; she continued to heal her brother's wound in silence.

When the wound was completely healed, Fuerza sat up, staring at his sister; he didn't understand what had happened.

"Why?" he questioned again, placing a hand on her shoulder.

She smiled sadly at him, taking his hand from her shoulder and holding it in her hand. "Because I believe in second chances. You know that." She kissed her brother on the cheek.

Shock and confusion lingered on his face. After all he had done…

"Listen to me, Fuerza," the girl commanded. "You have to leave this place."

Fuerza opened his mouth to protest, but his sister's hand silenced him.

"You must understand," she pleaded. "Terrible things are about to take place. You _must_ leave Tierra des Ángeles. Before it destroys you. Please."

After a moment of silence, Fuerza nodded. "Be careful, Sister," he said, hugging his sister for the first time in his eternal existence.

And the brother left, hoping that his sister knew what she was getting herself into.

**

* * *

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* * *

**

**Author's Notes: **Yeah. So the plot is thickening, I guess. At this rate, I might be able to get one or two more chapters up this week. Gotta love having a week with no classes. So this is 8/11 or like 73 of the way to the end! Scary. I might make my deadline after all. Yay! Well, I hope you guys enjoyed it! Read and review, please.


	9. Changes Of Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes: **Yeah. Really tired right now. And I've just figured out that doesn't like the percent sign. But that's okay. Chapter nine. Yeah. Lots of stuff is going to happen in this chapter. Hopefully it will be good. Oh, and by the way, there are going to be twelve chapters in this fic, but the twelfth one will be a tester for the sequel. I'm still not sure if I'll do a sequel or not. That'll be up to you guys. Anyways, I hope you like chapter nine. And my thanks goes to

**sunflower**: Yeah, it's almost over, but I promise that it'll be good!

**AnonymousHieiFan101: **Thanks so much for the compliment. I hope you enjoy the rest of the work.

**Hidden Pagan:** I'm sorry the chapter was short. But it was as long as it needed to be, I think. Thanks for reviewing!

**LonelyInDarkness: **You're right; it was sudden. But I'm glad that you thought the chapter was good anyway. Enjoy the rest of the fic!

**samuraiduck27:** Yes, only eleven chapters of story. I'm sorry! The story will have a good close, though. Who knows? Maybe the sequel (if there is one) will be longer. Keep reading and reviewing!

You guys rock.

Oh, just in case, italics thing from previous two chapters still applies.

**DISCLAIMER: **I own nothing at all. NOTHING AT ALL. Sad, ne?

**Part Nine: Changes of Night**

"Damn, how many of these people are there?" Yusuke snarled as he dodged the attacks of a slew of angel mercenaries. "And why the hell didn't Koenma tell us that they're so freakin' violent?"

"Now really isn't the time to be discussing that, Yusuke," Kurama replied, repelling half a dozen mercenaries at once.

The arrival of a blur of black momentarily distracted Yusuke, Kurama, and Kuwabara from the hordes of angels trying to kill the tentai. A rivulet of crimson spilling from a row of oncoming adversaries gave the blur an identity.

"Hiei, long time no see," Yusuke smirked, fighting his way over to the yokai.

"What're you three doing here?" Hiei questioned as he carved up a row of mercenaries. "I thought Koenma was leaving this to me."

"He was," Kurama answered. "He changed his mind."

"What do you mean?"

Yusuke decimated the remaining attackers with his rei gun, and then turned to the yokai. "From what I could get," the tentai responded, "he thinks that sending what's-her-name here was a bad idea."

**..O.O..**

_"Wait, let me get this straight," Yusuke said, resting his chin on his fist. "You sent Hiei to take this chick to Angel World, and now you're sending us to get her back? That makes no sense."_

_"Yeah," Kuwabara seconded. "Why did you change your mind all of the sudden?"_

_Koenma sighed, head in hands. "I've made a mistake," the deity murmured. "One that could get someone killed."_

_Kurama raised his eyebrows. "The angels would kill her? After demanding her safe return to them?"_

_The deity gave Kurama a weary glance. "You have no idea."_

**..O.O..**

"Koenma sent us to get Akiko out of here before anything could go wrong," Kurama stated.

"I for one am assuming that we're a bit late for that," Yusuke added dryly. The tentai's eyes narrowed as he saw a man fleeing from the gated city. "Hey, who's going AWOL?"

Hiei glanced over to the gates and caught a glimpse of Fuerza's retreating back. "Someone Akiko told to leave," he responded. "I think she knows more about what's going on than we do."

Yusuke cocked an eyebrow. "She told him to leave? That's not a good sign."

"Neither is that," Kuwabara stated, gesturing to the fresh horde of mercenaries marching towards the tentai.

"Santidad, sir," a fair haired and pale skinned angel greeted, kneeling on the stone floor before another angel.

"Speak," the second angel, this one older and possessing the mien of a king. "What have you to tell me?"

"Koenma has broken his promise to us," the first angel replied angrily. "He has sent his Rekai tentai to retrieve the girl. Our men are doing all they can to keep them at bay."

A frown creased Santidad's brow. "I expected Koenma to back out. Send no more men to fight the tentai." He stood, his impressive form shadowing the other angel. "I can take care of this ordeal."

The onslaught picked at the gates picked up again; by now the carnage was horrible and the tentai were tiring.

"How many more of these damn things are there?" Yusuke hissed.

The answer to his question spoke quietly. "There's no need for you to fight now," Akiko said, not directly to either group of fighters. "There need be no more blood spilt."

"Quite right, Paciencia," Santidad's voice boomed from somewhere above the fighter's heads. Immediately the quarrel ceased and everyone was silent. The magestic angel smirked.

"There need be only one death today."

There was the briefest moment of silence before Santidad spoke again.

"Yours."

**Author's Notes: **Yeah. Well, that's chapter nine. Sorry it's so short. Chapter ten is going to be crazy long, if that tells you anything. Well, I really have very little else to say… please read and review!


	10. Blood of the Night

**Forgotten**

**Summary: **"It's like… like I don't know who I am anymore. Who I belong to…." Hiei/OC

**Author's Notes: **Hey hey! Almost done here. Exciting, no? Well, I'm excited. I've already got plans for my next fic. It's gonna be great. But first thing first. Here's to all of last chapter's reviewers:

**darkXdemon15: **Sorry for missing you in the last chapter! I didn't know you reviewed until right after I had posted part nine. Please forgive me! Anywho, thanks for reading the fic; I'm glad you like it so much!

**samuraiduck27: **Yeah, it was really short. I hadn't intended for it to be, but that's just how it went I guess. This chapter will be long though, I think. There's a lot of stuff that's got to go into it. Thanks for being such a loyal reader.

**AnonymousHieiFan101: **I hope you enjoy the rest of the fic. Keep reviewing!

You people make me feel so important. .

**DISCLAIMER: **I still own nothing. At all. Nothing. Not even a witty disclaimer to put here.

**Part Ten: Blood of the Night**

* * *

In the silence that followed Santidad's statement, the hordes of mercenaries retreated back into the white halls of the city. Yusuke, Kurama, Kuwabara and Hiei were all temporarily immobilized by surprise; Yusuke was the first to voice what all four of them were thinking.

"So after all the crap he went through to get her back here, all he wants is to kill her?"

Santidad spoke again. "All these years," he mocked, "you never had the opportunity to prove what you said. You failed, as I said you would."

There was an almost imperceptible tightening in Akiko's jaw.

"Now it is time for me to remove the stain from our race," the angel growled, a spear-tipped staff materializing in his hand.

"Do what you want," Akiko's voice echoed. "It will be your fall, not mine."

Santidad's speech suddenly changed, "_Τα χέρια μου θα είναι καθαρός."_

"What did he say?" Kuwabara whispered.

"My hands will be clean," a new voice said.

"Fuerza," Hiei frowned. "What are you doing here?"

Fuerza's eyes narrowed. "Listen."

"_Το αίμα μου θα σώσει αυτοί._"

Yusuke glanced over to Fuerza. "Well?"

"My blood will save them."

"We can't let him kill her," Hiei stated firmly, drawing his katana.

"We have to," Fuerza responded. "What is fated to happen must happen."

"So you would just let your sister die?" the fire yokai demanded.

Akiko's brother didn't respond at first. "There is nothing more that I can do for her," he said finally.

Attention returned to Santidad, who now had one huge hand clasped around Akiko's neck. "You bring death upon yourself," he whispered to her.

Defiant as ever, the girl retorted, "So do you."

It took less than a minute. Akiko's body was skewered on the end of the staff, blood staining her robes. At the same instant, the great white marble columns that filled Tierra des Ángeles began crumbling—as if the world itself was dying.

In panic, Santidad pulled the spear out of Akiko; he took hold of her shoulders and shook her violently demanding, "What did you do? What the hell did you do?"

The girl didn't have to answer him: the upper half of one of the great columns toppled off its base and fell forward onto Santidad, crushing him but missing Akiko by inches.

A grim smile on her face, Akiko muttered, "I told you so."

"What the hell is going on?" Yusuke questioned. "It feels like the whole place is going down.

"Probably because it is," Kurama stated. "Which means we have to get out of here."

"I can get us out," Fuerza stated.

"Why would you help us?" Kuwabara demanded.

"I owe her," the angel stated simply. "As long as everyone is within a certain radius of me, I can transport us all to anywhere in your city."

Kurama nodded. "That seems to be our best bet, then."

"Yeah, there's only one issue," Yusuke said.

"What?"

The tantei pointed to where Akiko lay, Hiei now beside her, lifting her limp form off the marble floor.

Tierra des Ángeles shuddered more violently.

"We're running out of time," Fuerza stated.

"Hiei get your ass down here!" Yusuke shouted.

In a few flashes of black, the fire yokai was once again standing with the other tantei, Akiko's form cradled in his arms.

"All right, let's get out of here," Yusuke stated.

Tierra des Ángeles melted away from them; they watched it crumbling until the last image of it faded to darkness.

* * *

"Damn, that's one way to cause a migraine," Yusuke grumbled, blinking to force his eyes to adjust to the sunlight in the park.

Kurama looked around cautiously. "Fuerza, what made you decide to bring us here?"

The angel indicated Hiei, who was now placing Akiko on the ground, still cradling her upper body. "He met her here," Fuerza stated evenly.

Akiko's vision slid in and out of focus; she could scarcely make out the visage of the one who was holding her.

"Hiei?" she whispered, wincing inwardly at how weak her voice sounded. The yokai's only response was to hold her tighter. A soft smile on her face, she fumbled around, trying to find Hiei's hand with her own.

"Hiei," she whispered," I'm gonna die."

The yokai shook his head, "No," he stated.

"I am," she whispered.

"I don't want you to."

"I'm sorry. I can't help it."

"…I know."

"I did the right thing."

"I know."

"She can rest now."

"Who?"

"The angel. Paciencia. It's over."

Akiko took a shuddering breath; Hiei held her closer.

"Do you think I'll enjoy heaven? After everything that's happened, do you think it'll be better?" the girl asked softly.

"I think it will be," Hiei said in a barely audible whisper.

"So do I." Her eyes slid shut and her breathing ceased.

Struggling to keep up a mask of stoicism, the yokai set Akiko's lifeless form onto the ground.

"You were too late, then?" Koenma's voice questioned. "I was afraid that'd be the case."

The Reikai deity appeared standing beside Akiko's body, looking down at her. "I take it Tierra des Ángeles has been destroyed."

Fuerza nodded. "Completely."

"No more than I expected." The deity crouched beside Akiko. "Let's see what I can do here," he mumbled, pulling his pacifier out of his mouth and extending a hand over Akiko's body.

Pulsating white light spread from Koenma's palm and enveloped the lifeless girl, wrapping her in a warm glow. The slightest movement of her fingers indicated that Koenma was achieving his purpose.

"Akiko," Koenma whispered. "Akiko, can you hear me?"

The girl gave the slightest groan in response.

Slowly, her eyes flickered open.

"How do you feel?" Koenma asked her.

"Like crap on crutches," Akiko responded, trying to sit up.

"You're still weak," Koenma stated, pushing the girl back to the ground. Koenma stood, addressing the entire group now.

"All of you are going to be going to a safe house in the Reikai. You'll have to stay there for a while. I'll give you more details when we get there."

* * *

All seven of them lounged around a scrubbed wooden table. Koenma had used a power highly similar to Fuerza's to transport the group to the safe house, in the kitchen of which they now sat, awaiting some form of explanation.

Koenma sat in silent observation for a few moments, his elbows on the table and his head resting on his entwined fingers. A centuries-long ordeal and now it was finally and suddenly over.

"I suppose you'd all like to know some details about all this," the deity sighed.

"Firstly, I want you to know that I had no idea as to what would result upon Akiko's arrival in Tierra des Ángeles. At least, not until I saw Paciencia's memories."

"Forget that," Yusuke interrupted. "Why did Tierra des Ángeles start crumbling when that guy stabbed Akiko?"

"I've been wondering that as well," Kurama said. "But I'm more curious as to why Akiko's would-be assassin didn't know what would happen when he harmed her."

The deity nodded. "I'm surprised that Santidad wasn't aware of that myself. My only theory is that Santidad wasn't completely informed on Paciencia's reincarnation deal."

Akiko leaned forward in interest. "What about the reincarnation deal?"

Koenma rest his eyes on Akiko, studying her carefully. "When Paciencia was promised a reincarnated form, it was guaranteed her until she was able to prove that humans were no worse than angels. When Santidad stabbed you, he proved that an angel can harbor the same rage and hate that any human can. Since Tierra des Ángeles was created on the principle that the angel race was morally superior to humans, it stands to reason that, when that principle was proved false, the land wouldn't stand. I suppose that's why Santidad wanted Akiko back in Tierra des Ángeles. I think he knew that, should Paciencia's bargain ever come through, Tierra des Ángeles would be in jeopardy."

Silence followed this explanation, as each member of the group was absorbed in his or her own thoughts.

Sighing, Koenma heaved himself up from the table. "You all should probably stay here for a few days. There's quite a bit regarding Paciencia's reincarnation file and Akiko's 'death' that I'll have to take care of. Not to mention the fact that Akiko's been reported as a missing child."

Akiko cocked her head to one side. "I have?"

"Did you think your father wouldn't notice if you were gone for three months?" Koenma asked. "Don't worry about it, though. I'll take care of it." The deity began walking away, but stopped at the door. "By the way, Hiei, I've kept my promise. You're free to go back to Makai whenever you see fit." And Koenma disappeared, returning to Reikai to fulfill his duties.

After a few moments, Fuerza, Kurama, Yusuke and Kuwabara all made their way to their respective rooms, leaving Hiei and Akiko alone at the table.

"You didn't tell me you'd be leaving," Akiko whispered, not looking at the yokai.

"I didn't think it was important," he responded.

"Well, it is. Why are you leaving?"

"I have to."

"But why?"

Hiei did not answer her.

"Hiei—"

"I don't belong in this world," he interrupted. "I need to go home."

Akiko turned away from him.

"I won't leave without telling you," he told her as he stood from the table.

"I'll miss you," the girl whispered.

Hiei didn't respond; he stood and left the room, leaving Akiko by herself in the kitchen until she decided to go to her room in a somewhat melancholy state.

**

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Author's Notes: Yeah. I'm sick right now—can't breathe through my nose. But that's not important. This fic is just about done. There's only one chapter left, and I've already got it ready to post. But I'm not going to post it until May fifth. So you'll have to wait in suspense until then. Ok, here's the part where I need serious reviewer feedback (well, it also applies to the next chapter, but I want to know now anyways): should there be a sequel to this fic? Yes? No? You tell me. Thanks bunches! See you in the next (and... LAST) chapter. Read and review!**


	11. Serenade at Midnight

**Forgotten**

**Serenade at Midnight**

**Author's Notes: **Ok, this fic is almost done! This is the LAST chapter. And it's happy! I just feel all warm and fuzzy. If you're nice, I might make a sequel. Maybe. I hope you like it! Oh, and here's to last chapter's reviewers!

**samuraiduck27: **Yeah, it sucks to be sick. I hope you get better soon! Thanks for being such a loyal reader through this whole fic. You rock!

**Asaake: **Yeah, there was a lot to chapter ten. Thanks so much for reading and reviewing; I hope you enjoy the final chapter!

**ladyYoko: **Thanks for reading and reviewing! It means a lot to me. I'm glad that you like the story.

And so, here it is. The very last chapter of FORGOTTEN.

On the fifth, just like I promised.

Enjoy!

**DISCLAIMER: **I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho or the song "Iris."

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Millions of tiny stars glittered sweetly in the midnight sky, and Akiko stared up at them all from the balcony of her room at the safe house. She took a deep breath, inhaling the fresh night air, as she allowed her mind to drift to thoughts of the past three months' events. In twelve weeks she had gone from life as dirt to almost princess. A slight smirk played across her graceful features as she drew her dark navy robe closer around her shoulders. Quite a change. From victim to whore to the embodiment of purity. 'Oh well,' she thought heavily. 'I guess I'll get used to it eventually.' A heavy sigh escaped her lips, and she leaned on to the balcony's railing, humming softly to herself.

Memories flooded her mind as she continued to hum the little tune. Memories of a dark past, deceit, revelations… love? She shook her head to rid herself of the confused ideas running about her head and, yawning, drew her tune to a gentle close, turning around and returning to her room. Once she sat down on the bed, she pulled the covers above her nose, so that only her softly glowing emerald eyes could be seen above them.

"Hn. After all those things Koenma said about you, I thought you'd at least be able to carry a tune," a mellow baritone voice mocked without any real malice.

Gasping in surprise, Akiko sat up and turned to the exit that led to the balcony from whence she had just come. Once she saw the speaker, however, she smiled in relief and chunked a pillow in the direction that the voice came from saying, "You almost scared the living hell out of me, you know that?"

Hiei stepped out of the shadows, a slight smirk playing across his face. "Sorry," he replied, shrugging. "But someone had to let you know that a tone deaf cow has more perception of pitch than you do."

Scoffing, Akiko rolled her eyes sassily. "Right, like you could do any better."

"You'd be surprised," Hiei said, arching an eyebrow and sitting down next to Akiko on the bed. "What were you doing out there anyway?"

Akiko shrugged. "Just thinking."

"Care to elaborate?"

"…Not really."

Hiei studied her carefully for a moment, watching her avoid his eyes. "You're scared, aren't you?"

She looked at him sheepishly. "Overwhelmed, more like."

Smiling softly, he nodded. "Why don't you lie down? You look like hell."

"Gee, thanks," Akiko retorted sarcastically as she fell back on her pillow.

For a moment, they sat in silence, taking in each other's company until Akiko spoke up.

"Hey Hiei?"

"What?"

"Are you going to leave?"

Hiei gave her a sideways glance. "Yeah," he said softly.

"Soon?"

"Yeah. Soon."

"Oh," she responded softly and with the faintest note of sadness. "Sing me a lullaby."

He gave her a quizzical look. "Sing you a lullaby?"

"Yeah."

"How 'bout no?"

"Aw… please?"

"No."

Akiko gave a sniffle. "Alright," she said softly, turning away from him. "You don't have to." She curled herself into a tight little ball, still sniffing.

He looked at her tightly curled form, and sighed. "Fine, fine. I'll sing you a lullaby. But you'd better not tell anyone that I did this, or I swear I'll hunt you down and gut you myself."

Smiling innocently, Akiko turned back to Hiei and curled up beside him, her head resting on his chest. "Okay, I won't tell."

"Close your eyes and try to sleep, alright?"

"Yeah."

Still thinking 'I can't believe she talked me into this,' Hiei began softly singing softly to the tune which he had heard Akiko humming.

_And I'd give up forever to touch you_

'_Cause I know that you feel me somehow_

_You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be_

_And I don't want to go home right now_

Akiko gave a quiet yawn and snuggled closer to Hiei, who, though he still rolled his eyes, draped an arm protectively around her.

_And all I can taste is this moment_

_And all I can breathe is your life_

'_Cause sooner or later it's over_

_I just don't want to miss you tonight_

By now, he knew that the girl was asleep: her breathing was slow and even, and a peaceful look graced her soft features. How anyone would miss the fact that she was an angel…. He smiled softly at her petite form and, stroking her arm, continued the lullaby, even though he thought she could no longer hear him.

_And I don't want the world to see me_

'_Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am_

_And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming_

_Or the moment of truth in your lies_

_When everything feels like the movies_

_Yeah you bleed just to know you're alive_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

'_Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

'_Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

'_Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am_

Small rays of moonlight drifted into the room through the balcony window, and, though part of him wanted to stay in the picturesque scene forever, Hiei pulled himself off of the bed, being careful not to wake Akiko. He set her head down on the pillow and brushed stray strands of her auburn hair out of her fair face, and ambled quietly over to the door, still softly singing the last few lines of the lullaby as he left the room

_I just want you to know who I am_

_I just want you to know who I am_

_I just want you to know who I am_

As the door to her room slid silently shut, the girl's lips turned up in a faint smile as if the lullaby was echoing in her dreams.

**

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Author's Notes: Aww… wasn't that sweet? Oh, I bet you can't guess what Akiko means? Give up? It means Iris! Thoughtful, no (though I think the name refers to the flower and not to the part of the eye)? Any who, that was my first really fluffy chapter, so I hope it was good! And I really hope that you all enjoyed this fic; I know I enjoyed writing it (minus the painful writer's blocks…)! Special Thanks to all those who read this fic and kept hounding me to finish and to my reviewers:**

**demonchild22**

**Kurama'sfoxykitsune**

**Samuraiduck27**

**Suntiger**

**Taylor**

**darkXdemon15**

**random chick**

**Asaake**

**Black Hanyou Rahvin**

**ladyYoko**

And, of course to my dear friend Moojuice Nne for helping me through the (numerous) rough spots with this fic and always being so optimistic!

All right, now here's where I need you guys to respond. Do you want a sequel? If you don't want it, I won't write it, so TELL ME!

Hope to hear from you!

Oh, and check out my latest fic, "Prisoner of War."

It's been real,

Sheepchi


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